AFFILIATES

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Lastolite has unveiled its new Low Level Posing Tubs. The set consists of three tubs in a variety of sizes which can be used on their own or in conjunction with Lastolite’s existing set of posing tubs. Each unit is capable of supporting up to a 20-stone adult and comes with its own carry case & shoulder strap. The new Low Level Posing Tubs are available at £130.

Instaprints have launched an online marketplace which offers Instagram users around the world the ability to sell their photos as canvas prints, framed prints, acrylic prints, greeting cards and posters. “Instaprints was designed for anyone who wants to turn their Instagram photos into an online business,” said Sean Broihier, founder of Instaprints. “Instagram users love transforming their photos into stylized works of art. Our website allows those users to generate income by selling their photos as actual art products which you can hang on your wall.” The company sets a base price for each available product, and sellers then add a markup to each base price. When a sale is made, sellers keep their entire markup.

Sony has announced that it is developing a new type of high definition wearable video camera. The device will feature Sony’s SteadyShot image stabilisation technology, an Exmor R CMOS sensor and an ultra-wideangle Carl Zeiss Tessar lens. Additionally, Sony will offer a suite of mounting attachments, including waterproof and ruggedised housings. Sony plans to bring the new point-of-view video camera to market in Fall 2012.

Canon has announced the upcoming release of a major firmware update to its EOS 7D digital SLR camera. Version 2 adds “powerful memory management algorithms” that allow the camera’s buffer to accommodate up to 25 raw files or 130 JPEGs. Additionally, a range of newly-added editing functions gives photographers more control over how images look, allowing post-production to begin in-camera. The firmware update also offers improved audio functionality in movie mode, a digital wind-cut filter, expanded user control over the camera’s auto ISO feature, as well as added capacity for users to track the location of their still images with new support for the GPS Receiver GP-E2. Firmware v2 will roll out from August 2012.

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Apple has posted a new Digital Camera Raw Compatibility Update to Apple Aperture 3 and iPhoto 11. Version 3.14 adds support for raw image files generated by the new Canon EOS 650D / Rebel T4i and the Sony SLT-A37. You can download the upgrade from the website below.

159 individual works have been selected for the fifth annual Foto8 Summershow. Entries were received from photographers on every continent, as far afield as Hong Kong to Chile and Russia to Australia, making this a record year with more than 3200 total image submissions. A panel of internationally respected judges will select an image to be Best in Show for which there is a £2,000 prize. This year the Best in Show will be judged on 5th July by acclaimed British photographers Alison Jackson and Simon Roberts, the BBC’s online photography director Phil Coomes, TimeOut’s chief arts critic Ossian Ward and critic and curator Gerry Badger. The Summershow 2012 Exhibition will run from 7th July – 18th August.

ExpoImaging has released three new Rogue Lighting Kits for “strobists,” or small flash enthusiasts. The Rogue Starter Lighting Kit ($99.95, pictured) is an entry-level bundle consisting of light modifiers designed to improve the quality and variety of lighting choices available to photographers using speedlights on- or off-camera. The Rogue Portrait Lighting Kit ($149.95) is a larger collection of light modifiers providing greater light control for portrait and event photographers shooting with multiple speedlights. Finally, the Rogue Master Lighting Kit ($199.95) is for the most advanced speedlight photographers looking to create multiple lighting set-ups using combinations of the kit’s soft box, bounce flash reflectors, flags, honeycomb grids and coloured gel kits

Focal Press has released a new title, “Photographing Waterdrops: Exploring Macro Worlds with Harold Davis.” Written by award-winning photographer Harold Davis, this photography book is intended to offer a fresh, creative perspective into the dynamic possibilities of natural waterdrop photography. “The photographic opportunities offered by waterdrops are as unique as they are fleeting,” said Davis. “Encapsulated inside each waterdrop is a movement of light, focus and shadow offering a fisheye view of the world that is both recognizable and recognizably abstract.” The 208-page book, “Photographing Waterdrops: Exploring Macro Worlds with Harold Davis” is available for $29.95.

Ricoh has posted a firmware update for the Ricoh GXR system. Affecting all camera-lens modules, Version 1.51 improves the quality of images taken using a combination of negative exposure compensation and Multi-P AUTO white balance. For the Ricoh GXR M module, it additionally fixes bugs related to the colour of the display and the recording of manually entered focal length and f-number values in the DNG file headers. The A16 module (pictured) now correctly records the colours at the top of colour images recorded using color bracketing. You can download the firmware update from the website below.

Polaroid has unveiled the Z2300 instant digital camera, featuring a 10-megapixel imager, a 3-inch LCD screen and an integrated printer with ZINK (Zero Ink) technology. The camera uses Polaroid’s patented, 2"x3” ZINK Paper, an advanced composite material with cyan, yellow, and magenta dye crystals embedded inside. Additionally, your images can be automatically saved to an SD card, just like a regular digital camera. The Z2300’s on-board editing suite allows you to review and crop your pictures right on the camera without transferring them to your PC. And you can choose to automatically print every picture or wait for the perfect shot to avoid wasted prints. The Polaroid Z2300 instant digital camera has a suggested retail price of $159.99. 50-sheet packs of 2x3” Premium ZINK Paper retail for $24.99 and 30-sheet packs sell for $14.99. Both are available for pre-order via the website below.